Flow control valves can be utilized in various applications, such as firefighting, for regulating fluid flow. As an example, fire engines may use a flow control intake valve at a pump panel, attached to a pump inlet in the fire truck. In this example, an inlet side of the intake valve can be coupled with a water source such as a hydrant or tank, and flow into the truck can be controlled by the attached inlet valve. Currently, the inlet side of the intake valve is typically designed to be angled relative to the outlet connection in order to achieve a more compact design.
Flow control valves comprise flow controlling element, which may be devised in a variety shapes and types, such as a gate, piston or ball. A typical ball valve can consist of a ball-shaped element that is positioned inside the valve body, and the ball-shaped element can include an interior bore for a flow path, along with an exterior sealing surface. A size of the interior bore opening is typically, roughly equal to a size of the valve inlet flow area to facilitate a desired flow. Typically, the ball geometry includes a single spherical exterior diameter sealing surface configured to mate with a sealing element of the valve body positioned adjacent one or both sides of the ball. The ball is typically rotated around a pivot point, through about ninety degrees of travel, by a handle or an actuator to change the flow path from an open position to a sealed, closed position.
Current manual actuation of intake valves is usually provided by handles or hand wheels located to the side of the valve or actuator, at an angle to the flow path. The hand wheels provide a relatively slow-opening process for the intake valve for mitigate of “fluid hammer” pressure surges. Ball intake valves typically use a series of gears to rotate the flow controlling element, resulting in a gear box protruding from the valve body. Thus, these offset types of manual actuators utilize additional space at the pump panel in order to obtain the mechanical advantage required to operate effectively.